Medieval Crossbow

The History of Medieval Crossbow
The History of the Crossbow dates back to 600BC in Ancient
China. The Greeks and the Romans were also known to use this
deadly weapon. The Medieval crossbow was reintroduced to England
by William the Conqueror and the Normans in 1066. The correct
term for a crossbow is an Arbalest. The crossbow range was 350 –
400 yards but could only be shot at a rate of 2 bolts per
minute. The crossbow was easy to use, requiring minimal training
and required little strength to operate. The medieval Knight was
the most powerful and effective warrior and said to be worth 10
foot soldiers, who were regarded with the lowest esteem and
considered expendable. The crossbow could be used by an
untrained soldier to injure or kill a knight in plate armour.
The crossbow, itself, was therefore viewed as an inhuman weapon
which required no skill and had no honour. It was even banned by
the Pope!

The Crossbow was, however, a very useful weapon which could be
used by the young, the old and the infirm! The crossbow was used
throughout the Middle Ages. Richard the Lionheart's army had
both crossbows and longbows. King Richard died as a result of
gangrene after being shot by a crossbow bolt at Chalus-Charbrol
near Limousin, France, on 26 March 1199. The threat of
Mercenaries flooding England from the continent, willing to
fight for the highest bidder, led to one of the clauses in the
Magna Carta (1215) seeking to banish all foreign crossbowmen.
All attempts to apply a weapon ban on crossbows failed and all
such requests were ignored...

Medieval Crossbow

Medieval Crossbow

Medieval Crossbow - The History

Medieval Crossbow - Facts and Information

Medieval Crossbow - Description

Crossbows are hated and banned!

Medieval Crossbowmen and their status

Skill level required to fire a crossbow

Description of the Medieval Crossbow
The crossbow applied engineering to the short bow.

A crossbow had a wooden stock generally made from yew ash,
hazel or elm and coated with glue or varnish

The 'bow' was made of made of wood, iron or steel

The bow had a span of two to three feet

The string of the crossbow was made from hemp as it was the
strongest and least elastic fibre available

The string was then soaked in glue as some protection
against moisture

The string was pulled back by using a lever or winding a
crank on a ratchet

By this mechanical method of 'drawing' the string far more
tension could be gained than be muscle power alone. The
crossbow was therefore an ideal weapon for a young boy, an
old man or a sick soldier!

The bolt or quarrel was laid in a groove on the top of the
stock and the trigger pulled

There were two or three notches to rest the thumb which
could then be lined up with the bolt forming the crossbow
sight

The crossbow bolt, unlike a light flying arrow, was short with a
deadly point. The crossbow range was 350 – 400 yards but could
only be shot at a rate of 2 bolts per minute. The crossbow was
easy to use, requiring minimal training and required little
strength to operate. A maker of bows, arrows, and other archery
goods was called an Artillator.

Medieval Crossbowmen
Medieval crossbowmen were little more than peasants. They wore
ordinary clothes which were reinforced with leather patches,
strips of metal or quilted cloth. The simple use of the crossbow
as a weapon led to groups of crossbow men being formed for the
protection of towns. The Medieval crossbow had several
advantages as a Medieval weapon:

An untrained soldier could operate a crossbow

The Crossbow could be carried ready loaded with a bolt
(unlike a Short or Longbow)

A crossbowman could kill a Knight in full armour

Crossbows were easier to aim than short bows or longbows

Crossbowmen required less upper body strength to operate the
weapon

The main disadvantages of the Medieval crossbow were the expense
and time to manufacture and the slow firing rate. From the
crossbowman's point of view its main disadvantage was his
vulnerability whilst reloading the crossbow. He needed
protection and tall shields called pavises were developed.

The Pavise - the Shield of the Crossbow men
On the battlefield the Medieval crossbowman was particularly
vulnerable while reloading his crossbow. Crossbowmen therefore
protected themselves with a tall shield which was known as a
pavise. The crossbowman would duck behind the pavise to re-load
his crossbow during a battle.The pavise was a a large convex
shield, some 4 to 5 ft. high and sufficiently broad to cover the
entire body. The word 'pavise' originates from Pavia, in Italy,
where pavise shields were originally made. A pavise would be
carried slung on the back of the crossbowman. It was then
propped up in front of him, in a permanent position, before the
battle commenced. The pavise of the crossbowman could also be
used as defensive screen formed by linking pavises together.
Such a defensive screen was known as a 'Pavisade'. The Medieval
era was strongly religious. Crossbowman would have fought in
crusades, as well as battles in England. Many Pavises were
therefore painted with religious scenes. The Medieval crossbow
men hoped that the enemy would believe that they were committing
a sacrilegious act if the Holy image was damaged.

The Medieval Crossbow is Banned!
The Magna Carta sought to ban foreign crossbowmen in order to
defend the realm but a Pope had tried to ban this weapon even
before this time! The devastating effect of the crossbow and the
wounds it could inflict were reflected by these Medieval weapon
bans. Article 51 of the Magna Carta stated the following:

" As soon as peace is restored, we will banish from the kingdom
all foreign born knights, crossbow men, sergeants and mercenary
soldiers who have come with horses and arms to the kingdom's
hurt."

In 1139 Pope Innocent II and the Church of the Lateran Council
issued a judgement against the use of the crossbow by Christians
against Christians. The Medieval crossbow was referred to as
"the deadly art, hated by God, of crossbowmen..."

The Medieval crossbow was viewed as an abomination but the
weapon bans failed to stop the rise of crossbows, they were
simply ignored, and the crossbow continued to remain a favoured
weapon across both Europe and England.

The Medieval Crossbow is used for Sport
The Medieval crossbow is strongly associated with Medieval
warfare however use of this weapon was a very popular sport. The
crossbow was used for target shooting and hunting. Queen
Elizabeth I (1533-1603) and King James I (1603-1625) were expert
hunters with the crossbow!

Medieval Crossbow - The Crossbow and the Longbow
The Medieval Crossbow was supplanted by the longbow. The
crossbow range was 350 – 400 yards but could only be shot at a
rate of 2 bolts per minute. The crossbow was easy to use,
requiring minimal training and required little strength to
operate. But it shot too few bolts! The longbow launched arrows
faster than any previous bows. A skilled longbowman could
release between 10 - 12 arrows per minute - but required
considerable training.

Medieval Crossbow
In Europe, the Medieval crossbow persisted as the favoured
weapon until the end of the 15th century. We are reminded of the
crossbow even today whenever the phrase "a bolt out of the blue"
is repeated. This meaning of this saying implies a sudden event
and is derived from a fast crossbow bolt arriving without being
seen.

Medieval Crossbow

Medieval Weapons

The Medieval weapons used by
the Medieval Knights - Swords - Broadsword, Falchion,
Bastardsword, Cutting sword and the Greatsword